WASHINGTON COUNCIL OF THE BLIND
Convention 2018
WCB, PAVING THE WAY
Hosted by
South King Council of the Blind
PROGRAM
November 1, 2, and 3, 2018
Crowne Plaza Seattle Airport
SeaTac Washington
Welcome to the 2018 annual convention of Washington Council of the Blind!
All WCB meetings are open to members and non-members alike.
WCB is pleased to offer this program to assist you in locating all activities of this convention along with times and room assignments.
You can download a text copy or large print copy of this program for offline reference or printing.
Madrona, Gateway, Magnolia, and Yesler rooms are located on the main floor of the hotel; Summit Ballroom and Queen Anne Room are on the 12th floor.
For the security of this event, conventioneers are asked to wear their convention name tag at all convention functions.
Throughout the general sessions, the Friday luncheon, business meeting and banquet, door prizes will be given out to those registered for the convention and in attendance at the time their name is drawn.
The majority of this weekend’s events will be streamed live on ACB Radio www.acbradio.org or accessed by phone at 605-475-8130 and recorded for future enjoyment on www.wcbinfo.org.
Aira is a proud sponsor of the WCB State Convention. with Aira Access Network, Beta trial users, early Explorers, and now Aira Guests can all experience the service as part of the WCB state convention weekend.
What is Aira? AI stands for Artificial Intelligence. RA stands for Remote Access. When you put them together you get Aira. Aira is a service that uses artificial intelligence and augmented reality to connect people to highly trained, remotely-located agents.
Thanks to Aira Access, WCB conventioneers will be able to use this service throughout this weekend, FREE OF CHARGE. Just download the app and at the touch of a button find a hotel or conference room, read a menu, have described exhibit hall tables, or call an Uber or Lyft to get to the airport. Aira Access will also be available for your use at the nearby 13 Coins restaurant and is always available to you at the SeaTac Airport.
To download the Aira app, visit: www.aira.io/app. You will see a banner at the top of the app that says, “Tap to use Aira as a Guest for Free.”
Come and listen to a brief presentation about Aira at the WCB Board meeting on Thursday evening, and be sure to visit the Aira exhibit table on Friday to try their smart glasses and talk to an Aira Team member to get Aira anywhere.
Thursday, November 1, 2018
2 to 5 PM Registration/Information desk (Madrona Foyer) Open only to those who have pre-registered
3 to 4:30 PM WCB Welcome Lounge (Queen Anne 12th floor) Drop by to meet old and new friends, find a partner for dinner, or peruse the program with someone and ask questions about the convention. Hosted by the WCB Membership Committee
7 PM Preconvention Board meeting (Madrona)
9:30 PM Resolutions Committee meeting (Queen Anne 12th floor)
9:30 PM Constitution and Bylaws Committee meeting (Madrona)
9:30 PM Hospitality (Gateway) Mingle with old and new friends over snacks and beverages.
Friday, November 2, 2018
7 AM to noon Registration/Information Desk open (Madrona foyer)
7:30 AM General Breakfast (Summit 12th floor)
7:30 AM First-Timer Breakfast (Queen Anne 12th floor) For first-time WCB convention attendees. Facilitated by Meka White, Chair, WCB Awards Committee
7:30 AM Presidents Breakfast (Yesler Board Room) For Chapter Presidents or their designee. Facilitated by Denise Colley, WCB President
10 AM to noon Exhibits (Gateway)
1 to 5 PM Exhibits (Gateway) Coordinator: Carol Brame
10 AM to 5 PM One-On-One Technology Training (Yesler Board Room) By Appointment Only with Al Yardley, Assistive Technology Specialist: accesstechnology@q.com or 253-223-2069
2 to 5 PM WCB Fundraiser Multi-Raffle (Queen Anne 12th floor) Coordinator: Lisa George
GENERAL SESSIONS (Madrona)
8:45 AM Opening Ceremonies — Presentation of the Colors: Paralyzed Veterans of America, Color Guard; Invocation: Pastor Greg Barnett, East Renton Community Church; Welcome to Seatac: Erin Sitterley, Mayor, SeaTac; Welcome by the host chapter: Kevin Daniel, President, South King Council of the Blind.
9:05 AM President’s Report — Denise Colley, WCB President
9:25 AM Report of the Nominating Committee — Berl Colley, Chair, WCB Nominating Committee
9:35 AM Reading of proposed amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws — Frank Cuta, Chair, WCB Constitution and Bylaws Committee
9:50 AM Celebrate and Motivate, a tribute to Sue Ammeter and Marlaina Lieberg – Presenter: Frank Cuta, WCB Secretary
10:15 AM Break
10:30 AM The Friendly Skies Are a Little Friendlier: Accessibility of Inflight Entertainment and the Use of Service Animals On Airplanes — Tony Stephens, Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs, American Council of the Blind
11:00 AM Chapter round up — Four chapters to share
11:10 AM Travel Tech Talk: This panel will discuss newly developed apps and strategies which can assist blind people to travel independently, including OrCam, Aira, and Be My Eyes. — Moderator: Holly Turri, President, United Blind of Whatcom County — Panelists: Andy Arvidson, WCB First Vice President; Deb Lewis, WCB Treasurer; Jim Turri, WCB Board member.
12:00 PM Awards Luncheon: It’s time for special awards to be presented and to hear from some of this year’s first time attendees. — Meka White, Chair, WCB Awards Committee
1:15 PM Happy Valentines: It’s all about Heart, Body, Mind, and Yoga — Ed and Maud Valentine, Instructors, Valentine Yoga
1:45 PM Paving the Way with Creative Passion: Insight from extraordinary people who have unique talents and the ability to erase limitations. — Moderator: Heather Meares — Panelists: Joleen Ferguson, Quilts from the Heart, Walla Walla; Dan Lovell, The Soul of Wood Crafting, Olympia; Frank Cuta, Engineer Gone Wild, Benton City.
2:20 PM Chapter round up: Four chapters to share
2:30 PM Active Shooter Situations: Do you have a plan? — Officer Leroy Outlaw, Education and Training Section, Seattle Police Department
3:00 PM Break
3:15 PM Where’s Your Adventurous Spirit? Let’s explore recreational opportunities for people who are blind. — Vision Loss Connections: Patt Copeland, LICSW, Executive Director; Sheri Richardson, MSW, Immediate Past President of the Board of Directors; Tony Brown, Ph.D., LDO, Operations Manager; And Outdoors for All Foundation: Kenna Chapman, Custom Events Program Manager.
3:50 PM Chapter round up: Four chapters to share
4:00 PM The Time is Now: Getting involved with Emergency Response Teams in your community — Todd Holloway, Chair, Tacoma Commission On Disabilities and Luke Byram, Commissioner, Tacoma Commission On Disabilities
4:30 PM End of General Sessions
EVENING ACTIVITIES
7:30 PM Showcase of Talent (Madrona) Come enjoy entertainment provided by some of our talented conventioneers! Host: Alan Bentson, Capitol City Council of the Blind
9:00 PM WCB Life Members Reception (Queen Anne 12th floor) WCB life members only. Hosted by the WCB President
9:00 PM Hospitality (Gateway) Mingle with old and new friends over snacks and beverages.
Saturday, November 3, 2018
7 AM to noon Registration/Information Desk open (Madrona foyer)
7:00 AM GDUWS Breakfast and Business Meeting (Magnolia)
7:30 AM General Breakfast (Summit 12th floor)
9 AM to 3 PM Youth Program (Beacon) For registered teens only. Sponsored by Department of Services for the Blind, WCB Families with Blind Children Committee, and Rooted In Rights
GENERAL SESSIONS (Madrona)
8:45 AM Announcements
8:50 AM We Are ACB: It’s time to be in the know concerning blindness issues on a national level. — Tony Stephens, Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs, American Council of the Blind
9:30 AM The Jobs People Do: Three people who are blind share their journey to employment. — Facilitator: Cindy Van Winkle, WCB Second Vice President — Panelists: Michael Alvarez, Spanish Interpreter, Independent Contractor for TeleLanguage; Donna Smith, Manager, Accessible Services, Sound Transit; Jeff Bishop, Program Manager, Windows Accessibility Team, Microsoft.
10:15 AM Break
10:30 AM Lights, Camera, Action: Let’s tell our story through video — Courtney Cole, Rooted In Rights
10:50 AM Chapter round up: Four chapters to share
11:00 AM State of the State: Together let’s learn what’s happening with our three state agencies serving the blind. — Danielle Miller, Program Manager/Librarian, Washington Talking Book and Braille Library (WTBBL); Lou Oma Durand, Director, Department of Services for the Blind (DSB); Scott McCallum, Superintendent, Washington State School for the Blind (WSSB).
12:00 PM General Lunch (Summit 12th floor)
12:00 PM GDUWS Lunch and Program (Magnolia)
1:30 PM Annual Business meeting (Madrona) Agenda items include: In Memoriam, elections, budget, constitution and bylaw amendments, resolutions, old business, new business.
4:30 PM Adjourn
EVENING ACTIVITIES
5:30 PM Scholarship Reception (Magnolia)
6:00 PM Pre-Banquet hour and Multi-Raffle (Summit 12th floor)
7:00 PM Banquet (Summit 12th floor) — Master of Ceremonies: Kevin Daniel, President, South King Council of the Blind; Invocation: Malissa Hudson, member, United Blind of Seattle; Presentation of scholarships: Kim Moberg, Chair, Scholarship Committee; Presentation of awards: Meka White, Chair, Awards Committee; Banquet address: Tony Stephens, Director of Advocacy and Governmental Affairs, American Council of the Blind.
9:30 PM Hospitality and Karaoke (Gateway) Help us bring our 2018 convention to a close with socializing, singing, and refreshments.
2018 Convention Committee:
Cindy Van Winkle, Chair, Bremerton
Lori Allison, Registration Coordinator, Puyallup
Carol Brame, Exhibits Coordinator, Port Orchard
Denise Colley, program, Olympia
Kevin Daniel, Host Chapter President, Burien
Heather Meares, program, Walla Walla
Darryl Roberts, program, Seattle
Holly Turri, Volunteer Coordinator, Bellingham
Cathy Wilson, program, Tacoma
2018 WCB Officers and Board of Directors:
Denise Colley, President, Olympia
Andy Arvidson, First Vice President, Anacortes
Cindy Van Winkle, Second Vice President, Bremerton
Frank Cuta, Secretary, Benton City
Deb Cook Lewis, Treasurer, Clarkston
Steve Fiksdal, Immediate Past President, Federal Way
Lori Allison, Director, Puyallup
Carol Brame, Director, Port Orchard
Annee Hartzell, Director, Walla Walla
Holly Kaczmarski, Director, Dayton
James “J.R.” Kinnison, Director, Bremerton
James “Jim” Turri, Director, Bellingham